Cook Islands dicusses deep-sea mining research with China

Cook Islands officials discussed seabed minerals research with China during last week’s mission to Beijing. Cook Islands has licensed three companies to explore the seabed for nodules rich in metals such as nickel

Read More

New Zealand rethinks opposition to deep-sea mining

New Zealand is considering withdrawing its support for an international ban on deep-sea mining, the country’s resources minister told AFP on Tuesday. Resources Minister Shane Jones said opposition to the fledgling

Read More

Peaceful protest calls for moratorium on deep-sea mining in Cook Islands

Hundreds of Cook Islanders and tourists Wednesday joined a peaceful protest against seabed mining, calling for a moratorium on deep-sea activities. The rally held at the Avarua Harbour was organised by Cook Islands

Read More

Opinion: Not merely ‘exploration’: PNG deep-sea mining riles critics & surprises officials

A deep-sea mining operation that recently took place off the coast of Papua New Guinea (PNG) has raised alarm bells for environmentalists and called into question the validity of the country’s moratorium on such

Read More

Cook Islands PM urges Pacific unity on deep-sea mining as leaders gear up for crucial talks

Cook Islands Prime Minister and former chair of the Forum, Mark Brown is urging Pacific Island leaders to come together on a collective stance on deep-sea mining, ahead of a key talanoa session set for next month. The

Read More

Opinion: What can the Pacific learn from the EU Parliament vote against Norway’s decision to advance deep-sea mining

On February the 7th, the European Union (EU) Parliament voted against Norway’s recent decision to advance deep-sea mining in the Arctic by reaffirming its moratorium position and called for the European Commission and

Read More

U.S. political support for deep-sea mining growing despite pushback from allies

A report in the Wall Street Journal says U.S. political support for deep-sea mining has taken on a new urgency as Norway this week became the first country to legalise extraction of minerals from the ocean bottom

Read More

Te Ipukarea Society: Deep seabed mining and the emerging risk to our tuna fisheries

Last week saw the Cook Islands host one of the most significant meetings with respect to the shared tuna stocks in the region.  That was the annual session of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission,

Read More

Sovereign rights not enough, regional cooperation needed for deep-sea mining: TIS

There needs to be a regional approach to deep-sea mining, as opposed to relying solely on the sovereign rights of individual nations, given the transboundary risks such activities can pose to the Pacific Ocean, says a

Read More

International talks end without go-ahead for deep-sea mining

An international meeting in Jamaica to negotiate rules over deep-sea mining has ended with no green light to start industrial-scale mining and with an 11th-hour agreement to hold formal discussions next year on the

Read More

Deep-sea mining poses potential threat to tuna fishing in Eastern Pacific Ocean

Research published in the science journal Nature Ocean Sustainability has found deep-sea mining is likely to pose a threat to bigeye, skipjack, and yellowfin tuna populations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. Climate change

Read More

Deep-seabed mining is creating a noisy problem for Australia — and it’s only getting louder

Given the exponential threats it poses to the marine environment, deep seabed mining is destined to become a contentious global environmental issue. The risks are significant enough to make a mockery of any

Read More